Amal is the example of so many male students who with one incident get marked as a “troubled student.” This book addresses being a Black boy who is artistic, smart and college bound but due to systematic racism is found guilty for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Amal talks about the similarities between the school and prison that makes readers realize the prison pipeline is all too real.

This book is important. It shows the perspective of a Black high school boy who is not given the benefit of the doubt, who does struggle with emotions (as all teens do) but is assumed to be violent because he's Black. I'm definitely adding this to my classroom library and will offer it in lit circles. I think this would pair well with Monster (Walter Dean Myers) and Just Mercy (Bryan Stevenson).

*copy via Netgalley*

Powerful. Emotional. Devastating. Those are only a few words to describe Punching the Air, a novel in verse. Ibi Zoboi co-writes with Yusef Salaam, one of the wrongfully convicted Central Park Five. (Make sure to check out the letter to the reader at the beginning of this book.). Their story is about Amal, a boy who is convicted of a crime and is sent to juvenile detention. The writing - imagery, word choice, symbolism, and style- is phenomenal. Readers will feel the pain, anger, hopelessness, and determination of Amal as he faces trial, is prosecuted, and spends his time in the juvenile detention facility. This is a must read!

Thank you to the authors, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I completely expected a work from Zoboi to be phenomenal (it was). She is a brilliant writer. I was also excited to see what she would do with a novel in verse, as that's not her normal format (magic. That's what she did). This was extremely compelling, had a main character that jumped off the page, and addressed very unpleasant truths that could create weeks of discussions. I can't give the weight and gravitas to the issues of race relations and mass incarceration that Zoboi can. I can say that it angers me, infuriates me, and makes me want to see a world where punishments are based in rehabilitation more than in retribution (and are administered fairly with no consideration for race or belief). So why one star less than perfect? I don't feel it had a satisfactory conclusion, or really any conclusion. So many real stories of wrongful imprisonment end in tragic ways or with a hushed up release to make white people feel better about their mistakes, a fictional story can give me a conclusive and pleasant ending, right? Right...? Still. Holy cow, this book. I'm going to be thinking on this one for a bit.

4 stars

In this fantastic verse novel, readers follow Amal from his experiences in court through his immediate incarceration for his role in an assault. From the start, it's clear that there is more to this story than authorities around him are taking into account, that he is being severely punished for his actual behaviors, and that his outcomes stem from people's perceptions of him.

This novel is such a quick read, and while the rapid flow made the challenging content slightly easier to stomach, I would have loved to see a bit more through the flashbacks and possibly toward the end. It would have been interesting to gain more insight into some of the employees as well as fellow incarcerated kids, too. In short, I really enjoyed this: enough to want to see more of and from it.

I'll be recommending this novel for students and colleagues alike: a worthwhile read for sure.